title: Increases in fragmented glial fibrillary acidic protein levels in the spinal cords of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
abstract: Using one-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, we analyzed protein fractions extracted from the spinal cords of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Several protein bands with molecular weights of 35-55 kDa were stained with Coomassie brilliant blue much more intensely in the ALS than in the non-ALS spinal cord. Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) immunoreactivity showed a significant decrease of 50 and 45 kDa band and increase in fragmented 36 and 37 kDa bands, which represented GFAP fragments devoid of 59 and 40 residues from the N-terminal, respectively, as determined by protein sequence analysis. Immunohistochemical examination of ALS spinal cord transections demonstrated increased GFAP-stained astrocytes in the shrunken ventral horn with massive degeneration of motoneurons. These results will provide new insight into the possible role of astrocytes in the pathophysiology and/or pathogenesis of ALS.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Fujita Health University, Toyoake, Aichi, Japan.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Fujita
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kato
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yamauchi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ando
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Honda
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nagata
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000690:Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis / Q000378:metabolism*; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D008970:Molecular Weight; D012394:Rosaniline Dyes; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D005904:Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein; D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D012394:Rosaniline Dyes; C004692:coomassie Brilliant Blue